31 October 2008

These two reds have been extracted from my pick of a variety of producers tasted at the end of October 2008, during Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" - an annual wine, food and arts festival centred on the broodingly Mediaeval village of Minerve and surrounding area (that link goes to the website) - over dinner at the excellent Relais Chantoventrestaurant in Minerve.

2007Minervois (SyrahGrenacheCarignan 13%) - similar fruit and spice to the 05 but more liquoricey and with tobacco undertones too; firmer mouth-feel v more concentrated, again attractive garrigue style and power on the finish. 89

Anne-Marie and Guilhem Durand bought this cute property twenty years ago, lying in the deepest northern corner of the Corbières appellation; just northwest of Lézignan and a pebble's throw away from Minervois country, actually. Their no-less-than 100 ha (250 acres) feature quite a lot of Syrah, which, looking at the wines, seems to like it here bathing in all that gravel, chalk and slate; with some young Mourvèdre coming on stream as well as less common Pinot Noir and Viognier, for example (and why not?). Anyway, the Durand family exports most of their wines, so good news for those of us in the US, Canada, UK, Belgium, Luxembourg or Germany (according to the printed blurb - see website for more details). I tried these in late October 2008, at a tasting laid on by the appellation people at Château Boutenac:2007 Viognier Vin de Pays d'Hauterive - nice exotic style with juicy v creamy v lightly crisp mouth-feel. 852006 Syrah Vin de Pays d'Hauterive - attractive spicy menthol and cherries on the nose, bit of a chunky framework v fruity with rustic edges. 852006Corbières (SyrahGrenache) - enticing herbal v creamy red and black fruit mix, more concentrated than you think it's going to be with firm texture and a bit of weight too. 872006 cuvée Plénitude Vin de Pays d'Hauterive (Pinot Noir Merlot Syrah) - herbal 'sweet & savoury' characters move on to light chocolate texture, a tad over-extracted and firm but it's interesting quand meme...2006 L'OptiméeCorbières (SyrahGrenache) - smokier richer style showing fair concentration v solid tannins, power and savoury v dark fruit on the finish. 89+

This old-as-history estate, and associated wines, originally featured as part of my ad hoc pick of a variety of producers encountered and tasted at the end of October 2008, during Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" (an annual wine, food and arts festival centred on the broodingly Mediaeval village of Minerve and surrounding area - that link goes to the website). A group of us stayed the night at Château d'Agel, which really is a magnificent full-monty ye olde chateau: click here to read a piece I did for Decanter magazine on great wine places to stay in the region ("Wine travel: western Languedoc"). A taster if you can't be bothered:

"... Not far from the amazing Mediaeval town of Minerve itself and much talked-about La Livinière appellation, is the quiet village of Agel, seat of Château d’Agel. This splendid place really is a full-on fortress complete with turrets, coats of arms, wide swirling staircases and no doubt secret passages too..."

And a couple of reds sampled in an appropriate setting of the old cellar:

30 October 2008

Domaine de la Combe BlancheGuy Vanlancker has slightly more eclectic plantings than most in the area - including some Tempranillo and Pinot Noir too! - which are the base (the non-eclectic varieties that this) for two pretty representative blends, both appellation Minervois-La Livinière: La Chandelière (mostly Syrah + Grenache) and La Galine (Syrah Grenache Carignan Cinsault), among others. These wines seem to stand the test of time well, especially La Chandelière: I remember once trying a rather good 1990 or 91 with about ten years on the clock, which I'd given to my uncle & aunt a few years beforehand and who'd had the sense to keep it. Anyway, Belgian Guy first moved here in 1981 and bought a few vineyard parcels around La Livinière, which is a cute wee village; so it’s easy to visit a few other producers on foot, especially since there are plenty of suitably pointy signposts. I bumped into Guy at the end of October 2008, during Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" festival, and tasted the following:2003 La Galine (14.5%) - warming and spicy, quite soft yet punchy mouth-feel; turning savoury, mature and tasty on the finish. 87+2004 La Chandelière (60% Syrah) - quite tight and firm with chocolate oak texture; concentrated and lightly perfumed, pepper and liquorice with attractive dry tannins on the finish.89-91

And these at Vinisud in Montpellier back in Feb 2004:2001 La Chandelière - Leathery touches to the tightly structured and spicy fruit, finishes with long bite of tannins and alcohol. Needs time to come together. 922002 La Galine - Rich chocolate and plum fruit, very concentrated and tight, grippy but quite fine and fresh too. 902000 La Galine - Aromatic, spicy pepper and blackberry; has nice texture and grip with lengthy mineral finish. 892000 Vin de Paysblanc (Roussanne Viognier Chardy) - Developing vegetal and complex minty notes, light toffee characters lend a rounded 'sweetness', finishing with a blast of alcohol. 872002Vin de Paysblanc - Bit of toasty oak combines with creamy and yeast-lees characters; rounded and quite rich, dry and full finish. 872001 Vin de PaysTempranillo - Lots of new oak and very grippy texture; we'll see if it opens out nicely as it's too oaky at the moment, although there could be something there... 80-84Didn't like his 2001 Pinot at the time, I'm afraid!3 Ancien Chemin du Moulin Rigaud, 34210 La Livinière. Tel: 04 68 91 44 82 or 06 80 43 40 61 (mobile), lacombeblanche.com, contact@lacombeblanche.com.

29 October 2008

The following wine was one of my pick from a variety of producers tasted at the end of October 2008, during Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" (annual wine, food and arts festival centred on the broodingly Mediaeval village of Minerve and surrounding area - that link goes to the website), at Les Tonneliers restaurant in Homps.

The following wine was one of my picks from a variety of producers tasted at the end of October 2008, during Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" (annual wine, food and arts festival centred on the broodingly Mediaeval village of Minerve and surrounding area - that link goes to the website), at the Chai de Port Minervois in Homps (wine shop & tastings).

The following wine is one of my picks of a variety of producers tasted at the end of October 2008, during Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" (annual wine, food and arts festival centred on the broodingly Mediaeval village of Minerve and surrounding area - that link goes to the website), over a hearty lunch at the very recommended Restaurant - Hotel d'Alibert in Caunes-Minervois:

28 October 2008

The following wine was one of my pick of a variety of producers tasted at the end of October 2008, duringLes Grands Chemins"Rencontres en Minervois" (annual wine, food and arts festival centred on the broodingly Mediaeval village of Minerve and surrounding area - that link goes to the website); mostly over a meal at the restaurants specified below.

26 October 2008

Etoile du MatinGeoffroy Marchand’s tiny domaine is organically grown ("if you can't here, where can you?"): his equally tiny cellar isn’t well-marked, although you should find it easily enough on the left just before the village of Feuilla; look out for the give-away wine-tractor or decorative Étoile du Matin boxes. Feuilla is the final frontier (derr dedd derr...) between Corbières, Fitou and Roussillon; and what a stunning setting too. I know I say that often enough, but you have to go there and you'll believe me! Geoffroy is one of an increasing number of young risk-taking growers either side of the Corbières, who’s crafting handmade, very natural and sometimes breathtaking wines (and sometimes a bit strange!): AOC, Vins de pays & table as fits his whim. He studied and worked in Burgundy, then a stint for the Roussillon’s one-and-only Hervé Bizeul, before settling here. His signature label (Syrah, Grenache and/or Carignan) is a wild-fruited powerful Corbières; there’s a peppery pure meaty Grenache rarity called Les Agnelles - actually, it’s got some Lladoner Pelut in it too, a disappearing Catalan variety thought to be related to Grenache (pelut means furry or pointy I think); and the 2006 was bottled without sulphur dioxide, something Geoffroy might continue to do depending on acidity levels etc. (starting with the 2007s) - and a slightly off-the-wall 100% Carignan. This estate should rapidly enter into every critic's Corbières top ten and is unquestionably one to keep an eye on. Tasted late October 2008:2007 Védépé (2/3 Carignan, 13.5%) - still had a bit of a malo-lactic fermentation pong, but this went after a few days open (probably implying it will naturally after a few months in bottle: the 07s were only just bottled when I tried them and haven't been released yet). Moving on to nice depth of pure crunchy fruit, spicy and fresh mouth-feel with lively blueberry and black cherry finish. 87+2007 Miss Tam Corbières (Syrah Carignan 13.5%) - similar slightly 'off' aromas at first, moving on to a more concentrated and powerful palate, again it has that hallmark purity and earthy spicy berry fruit; chocolate texture v lovely wild fruit v dry grip. Will be good. 89+2006 Carignan - fragrant liquorice and wild herbs; crunchy v rich, powerful yet quite fine and long, refreshing fruit purity too. 902005 Carignan- developing smoky liquorice, lush peppery and concentrated mouth-feel, still firm tannins but beginning to melt with savoury/tobacco notes. Delicious. 90-922006 Les Agnelles (Grenache Lladoner Pelut) - very appealingliquorice and cinnamon with raspberry and blackberry; meaty tobacco edges to a grippier textured palate, again has delicious fruit on its long tasty finish, maturing yet very alive. 92+2006 Patangame white (Grenache blanc Grenache gris) - declassified to vin de table because it has 20 grams/litre residual sugar (g/l RS: meaning it would have been 16%+ if fermented dry) and is a little atypical! Nutty oxidised tones with floral honeyed fruit; that touch of sweetness balances nicely with its power and fresh mineral acidity v toasted almond v milky yeast-lees notes too, then appley finish. Different! 90These wines are priced between €8 and €19. More Etoile du Matin wines here.

Nadine Franjus-Adenis has a background as a science journalist and broadcaster, who moved to the Corbières in the late 90s to "mettre les pieds sur terre," as she says on her website ("get back to my roots" or "a foothold on the land" type-stuff, man). A fascination for wine, and the powerful vineyard landscapes that characterise this eye-candy neck-of-the-woods, led to a winemaking degree in 2000 swiftly followed by her buying up a few plots of old vines near Ferrals. Nadine only makes two red wines, which she had on sampling at a tasting laid on by the Corbières people at Château Boutenac in late October 2008, including three vintages of her top one:

Château Sainte-EulalieTracking the wine-themed arrows out of the village of La Livinière up a lane heading for Calamiac, you should find (using eyesight rather than GPS) Château Sainte-Eulalie lying a good bit up the hill. Isabelle and Laurent Coustal bought this scenic estate in 1996 and are now making flavoursome, spicy and structured reds mainly from Syrah. If you call or email them in advance, they'll be pleased to take you on a spin around the property, where you get a fab view from the top (225 metres/700 feet) giving a snapshot vista of La Livinière appellation and its assorted, undulating, contoured vineyard terrain. The Coustal family also rent out a holiday cottage across the yard from the cellar, surrounded by postcard vines it goes without saying – see website for more info.

25 October 2008

Martine Pagès and Christophe Molinier have been at the helm of La Bouysse since 1996, "following in grandpa's footsteps," as paraphrased from their website. Their AOC Corbières vineyards spread across two terroirs (if you can refer to such big areas using this elusive term) - Fontfroide and Boutenac - and they also make some nice white and red vin de pays varietals and blends.I've picked these two wines from a tasting laid on by the Corbières people at Château Boutenac in late October 2008:

24 October 2008

The following wines are a couple of my pick from a variety of producers tasted at the end of October 2008, during Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois" (annual wine, food and arts festival centred on the broodingly Mediaeval 'city' of Minerve and surrounding area - that link goes to the website), over dinner at the recommended Relais Chantovent in said awesomely old and haunting village (where I met and talked to Didier Vordy):

23 October 2008

The following wines are some of my pick of a variety of producers tasted at the end of October 2008 during Les Grands Chemins "Rencontres en Minervois", an annual wine, food and arts festival centred on the broodingly Mediaeval village of Minerve (where Tailhades has a cellar cum shop), which has to be seen to be believed. Stunningly old and located...Domaine Tailhades Mayranne - Minerve domaine.tailhades@terre-net.fr2007 Minervois blanc (Marsanne Maccabeo) - aromatic and floral nose v oily and quite powerful mouth-feel. Nice style. 852006 cuvée EliseMinervois rouge - attractive pure spicy Syrahfruit, good grip v depth of fruit with lively peppery finish. 87+

21 October 2008

Château Lacour ManoyThe Arnaud family has been nursing vines around here (near the village of Boutenac) for quite a while (originally set up shop in the 18th Century apparently). The present boss is André-Jacques, who's making some quite good reds as featured below, although admittedly I didn't like a couple of the others I tasted, and a reasonably attractive sweet white vin de pay. They also have two spacious holiday gites on the property - for info, click on their website lurking at the bottom of this blurb. I picked out these two wines, for your amusement, from a tasting organised by the Corbières people at Château Boutenac in late October 2008:2002 cuvée Louis Domairon (50% old Carignan + Syrah Grenache) - vanilla notes lead on to savoury v resiny fruit with smoky edges; very firm mouth-feel (a little too perhaps), but it's got nice depth underneath even if essentially mature now. 872004 cuvée Louis Domairon - much richer and more concentrated with vibrant black fruits layered on spicy chocolate oak; promising I'd say with grippy v rounded texture. 89

13 October 2008

Jérôme Rouaud and his wife Sophie set up their domaine 6 years ago, farming nine hectares (22 acres) organically from the start; which means they got certified status from the 2005 vintage. Before that, Jérôme worked in the car industry in Paris (yawn) then for Nicolas wine shops; went to Bordeaux to study winemaking and viticulture, moved to the Roussillon to work as a winery assistant, and finally bought, ripped out and rebuilt an old cellar in Pézilla west of Perpignan.

11 October 2008

I, probably along with thousands of others, didn't know it was National Chocolate week in the UK next week; so Gauchos restaurants are offering what sounds like a tantalisingly South American choc based pudding matched with apparently "Argentina's first fortified red wine." So why not pop in and try their Chocolate Tres Leches with a glass of Malamado Malbec made by merit-worthy winery Familia Zuccardi (a tad steep perhaps at £12, pud and wine together that is, although I'm a bit out of touch with London prices). More info from: www.gauchorestaurants.co.uk and www.familiazuccardi.com (wasn't working when I tried).

This enticingly arty-sounding event combines discovery and tasting of wines from the Minervois area with art exhibitions and a cinema festival rolled into one. It takes place from 24th October to 5th November 2008 in and around the awesome historic town of Minerve (worth the trip all by its self), kicking off with a wine weekend 24-26 October where you get to taste and visit producers in the Minervois and Minervois La Livinière appellations. More info and booking:Syndicat d'Initiative de Minerve, 9 rue des Martyrs, 34210 Minerve. Tel/fax: 04.68.91.81.43, minerve.accueil@wanadoo.fr - www.les-grands-chemins.com.

Look at my posts in two or three weeks time for profiles of wineries visited on this trip.

10 October 2008

Eliane (nee Salinas) and Jean-Marc Lafage have been at the helm of this expanding, tri-location estate for a relatively short time (in the scheme of things), having both travelled and worked at different wineries from California to Australia for a few years beforehand. Overall, they now have 140 hectares (345 acres) of vineyards across the Roussillon. More than half of them, planted primarily with Grenache blanc, Muscat and Syrah, are located between Perpignan and Canet overlooking the sea; the original Lafage family estate which they took over from Jean-Marc's father in 2001. The winery has since been refitted and a cellar-cum-shop renovated next to it, where you can taste the whole range (my first visit there and tasting of their wines - see below* - was in October 2006).Back in 1996, they'd already bought about 30 ha of terraced vineyards called Le Vignon, near Tordères in central-southern Roussillon towards the mountains in an area called Les Aspres. It was largely remodelled and is home to Syrah, Carignan, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Marsanne and Muscat (see my October 2008 update below). Continuing the altitude theme, they also have a few plots in the wilds of the Agly valley, not far from Maury, planted with Muscat, Grenache and Carignan. These very different terroirs, to use the terrifying T word, allow them to fashion very good examples of all the regional styles; from dry and sweet whites - including one of the best, award-winning Chardonnays I've tried from round this way - a tasty gourmet rosé, intricate reds such as their Cuvée Léa to traditional aged Vins Doux Naturels.2007 update: Waitrose (upmarket UK supermarket chain) listed two of Lafage's red and white Roussillon wines for their April/May 'showcase'; and I heard rumours that they'd bought Château Saint Roch (see A to Z) in Maury, but admittedly I wasn't able to go along to a couple of recent events they put on so haven't asked them what the latest is! Watch this space... Yes indeed, Saint-Roch is being integrated into the Lafage empire. *2005 Côté Chardonnay - exotic honeyed nose (maybe some botrytis in there?), full & creamy but not oaky, quite rich fruit v fresh mineral intensity and very light coconut spice. 89+*2005 Centenaire Côtes du Roussillon blanc (mostly Grenache Blanc) - quite complex herbal honey and wild flower notes, nice freshness v weight and subtle spicy wood. 87*2005 Côté Muscat sec - zippy and gummy, elegant grape and clementine flavours, nice length and bite. 87*2005 Parfum de Vignes Côtes du Roussillon rosé - delicious floral red fruit cocktail, quite concentrated and chunky with fine dry finish bathed in aromatic fruit. 87-89*2003 Côté Grenache noir (14.5%) - a bit cold and oxidised (been open for a few days); however, it shows attractive liquorice and leather tones, powerful mouth-feel yet not out of kilter thanks to some freshness and dry grip.*2003 Cuvée Léa, Côtes du Roussillon Les Aspres (Grenache Syrah Carignan) - interesting mixture of delicate smokiness and coconut v earthy yet ripe black fruits; a touch of oak notes and texture balanced by sufficient fruit, power and panache. 89-91*2005 Grain de Vignes Muscat de Rivesaltes - lovely fresh fruit, once again offering zesty bite v extract, not so sweet in the end. 87-89*2003 Rimage Rivesaltes Tuilé (Grenache) - quite closed up to start, meaty v black fruit undertones, tight and concentrated with light oak texture v depth of sweet fruit; needs a few years to mellow. 90-92*1998 Vintage Rivesaltes (Grenache) - appealing savoury maturity v fig and raisin richness, quite chunky tannins v meaty fruit and sugar; drinking nicely now. 88-90

Lafage update October 2008 I was invited to clamber up the spectacularly located Le Vignon to witness the makings of 2008 vintage Les Onze Terrasses, their premium red wine sourced from selected parcels which are left until around mid October before picking. The view really is magnificent from just above the top of the vineyards, planted up to about 300 metres (950 feet), where you can see the terraced contours rolling down the slope (pictured above) and all points south (the Albères hills along the border with Spain), east (the Med), north (the Corbières) and, over the other side, Mont Canigou west-ish. 2005 Les 11 Terrasses is a blend of hand-selected Syrah (mostly), Carignan and Grenache, which are literally sorted grape by grape - removing any under- or over-ripe or rotten berries - and put directly into 500 litre barrels in situ. A bit of a publicity stunt perhaps, but there can't be many in the region making a red like this. There were two barrels this year the day I was there, but the quantity bottled of the 2005 suggests three. Apparently these are left for ten days, taken to the cellar then pressed down with wooden plungers and allowed to bubble away, with squashed whole berries still inside, for a further six to eight weeks before being emptied into a vat. After pressing, the wine goes back into new barrels for about 20 months. The 2005 was first released in Dec. 07, and 2006 will be available this Christmas; the attractive modernist label is designed by local artist Patrick Loste. 'T 11' is already sold in Belgium, Germany, Japan and the US, I'm told; I'll have to check the price but I know it's suitably expensive! Les Onze Terrasses (15%) - rather chocolate oak dominated to start although has lovely black fruits lurking underneath, gradually opens up to show depth, spicy intensity and purity; dark chocolate rounded texture v freshness, black olive & ripe blueberry flavours. Despite the oak (I can't help thinking they should take it out of barrel sooner), it does have nice balance and some kind of elegance, surprisingly that high alcohol is quite well-integrated. Went well with black pudding, saucisson and chorizo; a bit overpowering for the cured ham. Needs a couple of years to express itself better. 90+

More Lafage here(2009 Saint-Bacchus awards).Plus the latest medal-winning vintages of some of these wines are featured HERE(World Grenache Competition 2013).

The latest in slightly mad but why-not, eco-friendly marketing ideas comes from Sud de France - South of France wines, who recently shipped in a stash of bottles from the Languedoc and Roussillon into London by sail (having done the same into Dublin back in July). According to their blurb, "each bottle transported will have saved 4.9 oz of carbon emissions." I guess we'll have to take their word for it. The 100 year-old sailing ship Kathleen & May was moored at St. Katharine’s Dock until today, Friday October 10th, where they held a tasting of the wave-soothed wines for the trade and press, before they make their way into your local wine shop presumably (by electric lorry perhaps?!).

"What have they ever done for us?"

"The wine. That's something we'd really miss."

"Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the cellar..."

Welcome to one wine world according to RMJ: a random mix of succulent wine tasting & travel features, winery profiles small and large, 'wines of the moment', conversations with winemakers and atmospheric regional guides; all stamped by my take on planet vino and some of the people who populate it. Check out my extensive 'wine words' pages, 'post archive' and A to Z lists of featured producers, countries and regions; all highlighted below revealing hundreds of shorts, articles and columns, recent and past, published in/on various magazines and websites. But most of the material you'll find here is exclusive to WineWriting.com...And French Mediterranean Wine, the "mostly south of France" (but far from all) themed part of the blog oozing with opinions, wines, people, places and vine-scapes from across the Roussillon, Languedoc, Southwest, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhône Valley, Provence, French Riviera, Corsica, Alsace, Loire Valley and Champagne. These include many organic, biodynamic and 'natural' wine producers, but certainly not exclusively.It goes without saying that wine reviews, words and images on this site/blog are destined for those of legal drinking age only, whatever that is in your part of the world. Richard Mark James, via WineWriting.com and FrenchMedWine.com, fully endorses sensible consumption of alcohol, especially with good food and company. Lecture over.

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Vineyards: Banyuls-sur-Mer, Roussillon

Malbec crush, Cahors

Last train to Port central

Prime real estate...

... pretty middle of nowhere somewhere near Aniane, Languedoc.

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